Elevator-driving mechanism



Dea. 271", 192K 1,653,975

A. WmTEr-e ELEVATOR DRIVING MECHANI SM ,Filed Jan. 2l. 19%

lll

Rill

lili

Patented en.. 27, 1927.

llllllTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

AUGUST P. WINTER, OF MINNEAIOLIS, MINNESOTA, .SSIGNOR, lBY MESNE ASSIGN- MENTS, T SAMUEL C. CLOW`, 0F MIINNEAIOLS, MINNESTA.

ELEVATOlR-DRIVING MECHANSM.

Application filed January 21. 1926.

My present invention relates particularly to elevators oi' the bucket-equipped belt type such as used very generally in grain elevators, and has ttor its object to provide an improved power-actuated driving 1nechanism :tor such elevator belts.

*Generally stated, the invention consists of the novel devices and combinations of de-` vices and arrangement otf parts hereinafter described and defined in t-he claims.

ln grain elevating devices of the character above indicated the buckets on the rising side ol? the elevator belt will of course be iilled with grain while those on the opposite side will bc empty; and this throws such an excessive amount of weight on the loaded side oll the belt that with the driving mechanism usually provided, when the latter is disconnected irom the poweisupplying means there will be produced a backward movement of the elevator belt, and of course all suoli bach movement will have to be again talren up before the elevator will be again thrown into discharging action.

lily improved belt driving mechanism is olE such construction and arrangement that it is seliz loeliing; that is, when the power is out oil trom the drive the elevator belt will. be loclred against rotation so that the weight at the side of the belt cannot prod duce abaclrward movement of the belt.

The accompanying dra-wings illustrate the invention applied to a grain elevating deA vice ot the character referred to above. Re iterring to the accompanying drawings, wherein like characters indicate like parts throughout the several views,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation, with some parts brolren away, showing the improved driving mechanism applied to drive the elevator belt through its upper pulley;

Fig. 2 is a Yfront elevation ot the parts shown in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a vertical section taken on the line 3 3 ot Fig. 1.

'The elevator casing includes the customary elevator legs el that entend downward troni a head 5 which, at its receiving side, is :termed with a receiving hopper 6. For the distribution olf the elevated grain the customary pivoted and oscillatory distributing spout 7 is shown as connected to the bot tom of the receiving hopper 6. An elevator belt 8 is equipped with grain-elevating buckets 9 and is arranged to run under a Serial No. 82,839.

lower pulley, not shown, and over an upper pulleyY l() which latter is secured to a short shatt 11. At one end, shaft 11 is journalcd in a bearing 12 lined to a` beam 13 on the elevator head 5. i The other end of shalt 11 is extended through a bearing 14: and has a rigidly secured worm gear 1F. The bearing 1,11- is in one side of a gear housing 16 that is rigidly secured to a beam 13EL on the exterior ot the elevator head 5. The worm gear 15 is located within tliehousing 1G and is in .mesh with a worm 17 journaled in suitable thrust bearings 18 formed on or ap` plied to the upper portion of the housing 16. The shaft of the worm 17, as shown, is connected by a clutch coupling 19 to the armature shaft 20 et a small electric motor 21 the base ot which is shown as anchored to a flange bolted or otherwise rigidly secured to the gear housing 16 and to a cross beam 23, which latter is secured to the beams 18 and 13a oi the elevator head 5. This arrangement just above described not only anchors all oi the several parts to the elevator head but ties them together in proper relative positions.

rlhe gear housing 1G is Aformed open at its outer side but is normally closed by a head plate 2d shown as rigidly but detachably secured thereto by screws 25. This gear housing, therefore, is adapted to contain lubricating oil so that the worm and gear will run in oil.

lt will be noted by reference particularly to Fig. 3 that the shaft 11 is supported by bearings located both at the same side of the worin gear 15 and at a side away from the removable head plate 241. This arrangement permits ready access to the worm and worm gear and will also permit the shaft 11 to be drawn or forced Ytroni working position and removed with the worm gear when the head plate 23 is removed.

The worm and worin gear allord an ein tremely simple speed-reducing mechanism between the electric motor and the elevator belt and in the arrangement described the worm, when idle, forms a positive lock to prevent rotation of the worm gea-r 15, shaft 11, and pulley 10, and hence posi tively loclrs the elevator belt against back` ward rotation under the preponderous weight on the loaded side thereot'.

When grain elevating devices are installed in grain storage elevators the head of the elevator leg will be far from the l ground and at the upper portion of the elevator structure. As is well known, the power should be, applied to the upper elevatorpulley. A power device located at or near the ground would require long or eX- tended power transmission belts, chains or the like. By the application of the worm gear directly to the shaft of the upper elevator pulley and by connecting the electric motor directly to a worm of the drive a very simple yet highly eiicient arrangement is provided. The importance of applyingthe motor-driven worm and gear directly to the upper pulley of the elevator will be appreciated when it is understood that these elevators in vertical length usually vary from settling of the parts will not throw the same outof` alignment.

What I claim is:

1. An article of manufacture comprising a power unit for driving an elevating bucket belt of a grain elevator or the like ada ted to replace a sprocket wheel on the ead pulley shaft and the driving mechanism associated therewith, comprising a gear housing, means for attaching the gear housing to the head of the elevator leg, a worm ear within said housing on the head pu ley shaft, a bearing carried by said housing for aligning the said worm gear and housing with the head pulley shaft, a worm meshing with said gear and journaled in said housing, and a motor mounted rigidly with respect to said gear housing and operatively connected to drive said worm.

2. The structure defined in claim 1 in which said gear housing has a removable outer side plate for permitting removal of said worm gear whi e the other parts are in posit-ion.

In testimony whereof I aix my signature.

AUGUST P. WINTER. 

